Article 16 Secretariat

1.

a)

To arrange for and service meetings provided for in Article 15 and 17;

b)

To prepare and transmit reports based upon information received in accordance with Articles 3, 4, 6, 11 and 13 as well as upon information derived from meetings of subsidiary bodies established under Article 15 as well as upon, as appropriate, information provided by relevant intergovernmental and non-governmental entities;

c)

To prepare reports on its activities carried out in implementation of its functions under this Convention and present them to the Conference of the Parties;

d)

To ensure the necessary coordination with relevant international bodies, and in particular to enter into such administrative and contractual arrangements as may be required for the effective discharge of its functions;

e)

To communicate with focal points and competent authorities established by the Parties in accordance with Article 5 of this Convention;

f)

To compile information concerning authorized national sites and facilities of Parties available for the disposal of their hazardous wastes and other wastes and to circulate this information among Parties;

g)

To receive and convey information from and to Parties on:

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sources of technical assistance and training;

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available technical and scientific know-how;

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sources of advice and expertise; and

—

availability of resources

with a view to assisting them, upon request, in such areas as:

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the handling of the notification system of this Convention;

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the management of hazardous wastes and other wastes;

—

environmentally sound technologies relating to hazardous wastes and other wastes, such as low- and non-waste technology;

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the assessment of disposal capabilities and sites;

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the monitoring of hazardous wastes and other wastes; and

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emergency responses;

h)

To provide Parties, upon request, with information on consultants or consulting firms having the necessary technical competence in the field, which can assist them to examine a notification for a transboundary movement, the concurrence of a shipment of hazardous wastes or other wastes with the relevant notification, and/or the fact that the proposed disposal facilities for hazardous wastes or other wastes are environmentally sound, when they have reason to believe that the wastes in question will not be managed in an environmentally sound manner. Any such examination would not be at the expense of the Secretariat;

i)

To assist Parties upon request in their identification of cases of illegal traffic and to circulate immediately to the Parties concerned any information it has received regarding illegal traffic;

j)

To co-operate with Parties and with relevant and competent international organizations and agencies in the provision of experts and equipment for the purpose of rapid assistance to States in the event of an emergency situation; and

k)

To perform such other functions relevant to the purposes of this Convention as may be determined by the Conference of the Parties.

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